Attitudes About Mental Illness and Professional Danger Among New Social Work Students

Abstract

This article describes the results of a study comparing attitudes toward mental illness and perceptions of professional danger among new social work students (n=64) and other university students (n=111). Such topics have implications for social work education and curriculum development but have not been studied adequately. Results from multivariate analyses showed that new social work students generally had more positive attitudes toward serious mental illness. They had less fear, were less avoidant, and were more willing to help people with severe mental illness than other students. There were no differences in other attitudes, however, including the dangers posed by mental illness and the perceived dangerousness of the social work profession. Implications for educating social work students are discussed.